A new gel-based technique that could seal hazardous waste and
prevent the spread of chemicals has been field tested by Earth Sciences
Division researchers.

Collaborating with the Bechtel Corp., LBL demonstrated the feasibility of the
concept in January at a Los Banos, Calif., sand and gravel quarry--a site with
complex subsurface conditions similar to those at Hanford, Wash. If the
development effort continues to be successful, the technique could
substantially reduce both the financial and environmental costs associated with
the country's thousands of hazardous waste sites.

To immobilize waste, the LBL team drills a string of wells around and beneath
the perimeter of the area that is to be contained. Then, they inject a fluid
that is able to permeate the ground before gelling and forming an impermeable
barrier that surrounds the contaminated site.

Earth scientists Karsten Pruess and George Moridis liken their technique to the
creation of an underground isolation chamber. The researchers stress that each
site is unique and cleanup strategies will vary. However, they believe their
approach is a vital supplement to today's standard cleanup method.

"Up until now," said Moridis, "the country has been fighting a losing battle.
Huge areas can be contaminated by just a few gallons of hazardous fluids, and
once they get into the ground, contaminants are very difficult to strip from
the soil. Unfortunately, the state of the art of cleaning up these sites is the
same as it was 30 years ago--we dig the soil out and truck it to a hazardous
waste site."

The costs and limitations of this approach have handicapped the nation's
cleanup efforts. Thousands of contaminated sites have been identified but few
have been cleaned up. Over time, groundwater can cause the contamination to
spread. Meanwhile, nearby water supplies, rivers, residential areas, and human
health can be jeopardized by these delays.

As the project has moved from the lab to the field, LBL project chemists John
Apps and Peter Persoff have worked with chemical companies including Dow
Corning, DuPont, and Philadelphia Quartz Corp. to refine the performance of the
gel barrier fluids, all of which are environmentally benign.

Bechtel Corp. handled the operational aspects of the recent field test. Moridis
and Pruess say they chose the quarry site because the underground there is such
a jumble, and a severe test for any gel barrier fluid.

"The problem is heterogeneity," Pruess says. "Natural environments have an
intrinsic variability that you cannot anticipate or control. Companies like
Bechtel that inject grout into the ground--to strengthen dams and foundations,
or keep water out of construction sites--run into this all the time. At one
site, a grouting contractor injected over 1,000 sacks worth of cement slurry
down a hole, and every bit of it completely disappeared. Twenty feet away, they
were unable to inject more than a few dozen sacks."

For the recent field test, LBL injected two fluids, a colloidal silica and a
polysiloxane fluid. Several days later researchers excavated the plumes,
slicing the earth away to reveal how well they had managed to penetrate and
saturate the uneven ground.

The colloidal silica performed satisfactorily but the polysiloxane exceeded
expectations. Bechtel specialists who have been injecting materials into the
ground for two decades say the material did something they had never seen
before.

"Not only did we see a uniform, almost symmetrical plume," reports Moridis,
"but everything was grouted uniformly, everything from very large pores to the
small pores in clays. Nobody has seen a material that grouts clay before. As a
matter of fact, it's supposed to be impossible."

When injected into the earth, polysiloxane has a viscosity similar to water. A
catalyst causes it to turn into a strong, rubber-like gel and controls how
quickly this occurs. Soil chemistry, which can cause a compound to gel
prematurely, does not seem to affect polysiloxane. The product, a silicon-chain
polymer, was developed by Dow Corning for LBL.

Precisely how long a gel containment would last in the earth--a relatively
short time or a millennium--must still be determined, although the life
expectancy of similar products is 30-50 years. During remediation, even a
barrier with a lifetime of months can be useful, helping to contain or redirect
groundwater flows.

Besides their use at hazardous waste sites, gel barriers have other potential
applications. These include lining and capping landfills, stabilizing
slide-prone slopes, and preventing soil liquefaction in earthquake-prone
areas.

LBL researchers say the next step is a larger scale test to show the ability to
contain the area around an underground storage tank. The ongoing effort is
sponsored by the Department of Energy's Office of Technology development
(headed by Clyde Frank) under the In Situ Remediation Integrated Program (led
by Jef Walker and Mary Peterson).

CAPTION -- Earth Scientists George Moridis (left) and Karsten Pruess, who
are developing a technique to contain hazardous waste, check out the results of
a recent field test at a spot that was excavated to reveal the extent to which
a gel barrier fluid had permeated the underground.

White HouseScience Advisor John Gibbons flatly rejected the
proposal for a Department of Science advanced by House Science Committee
Chairman Robert Walker, R-Pa. (see Newswire, April 14). "Let me be clear about
one thing--this administration unequivocally opposes the creation of a
Department of Science," Gibbons told a colloquium sponsored by AAAS. "The
genius of U.S. science policy to date has been its recognition that pluralism
of support and diversity of performance allows the crucial freedom of inquiry
that unleashes creative spirit of our world-class researchers and their
students." He also ridiculed the Republican-controlled House for threatening to
take a "meat axe" to federal R&D programs, including DOE's. He defended the
Department's promoting of energy efficiency and its signing of CRADAs with
private industry. "If industry does not invest (in a CRADA) there is no
deal--industry is picking the winners and losers, not government," Gibbons
said. "Economists, investors, technologists and industrialists understand and
widely support this activity. In their rush to judgment, some members in the
new Congress don't want to be confused with the facts."

SENATOR DOLE SAYS NO TO DOE:

Senate Majority Leader Robert Dole of Kansas has publicly called for the
abolishment of DOE. The Energy Department, he argues, "would function better as
an agency within the Department of Defense." To this end, he has formed the
Senate Republican Task Force on Elimination of Government Agencies. In addition
to DOE, Dole has also called for the elimination of the departments of
Education, Housing and Urban Development, and Commerce: "The most ineffective,
burdensome, and meddlesome departments in the federal government," he said in a
speech last week in Kansas.

DOE SAYS ENERGY R&D HAS SAVED BILLIONS:

In answer to the apparent desire of a Republican Congress to deeply
slash funding for applied R&D programs, DOE has released a report that
claims American consumers have saved "billions of dollars" from energy
efficiency technologies developed at the national laboratories. Entitled,
"Success Stories: The Energy Mission in the Marketplace," the 22-page document
lists such technological developments as the low-emissivity windows and
high-energy electrolytes and batteries from LBL; high-compression refrigerators
and freezers; catalytic exhaust converters for auto engines; light water
reactors; atmospheric fluidized-bed coal combustors and low-polluting
coal-fired boilers; mudpulse telemetry for the drilling industry; and
photovoltaic electricity cost-reductions for solar cells. Said Energy Secretary
Hazel O'Leary: "We support high-risk and technically challenging R&D
projects. Not all of these ventures make it to the marketplace but when they
do, they pay off big." Copies of the report can be obtained by calling (202)
586-3900.

LBL PEOPLE IN THE NEWS:

Victor Perez-Mendez of the Physics Division was quoted in the April 17
edition of the New York Times in an article about computerized dental
radiography. The topic was new systems for reducing the exposure of dental
patients to x-rays. The article cited Perez-Mendez's development (through a
CRADA with Air Techniques of New York) of electronic sensors to replace dental
film (see Currents, January 20.).

Preparation has big payoff

By Don Bell, Emergency Preparedness Coordinator

It's April, and, in California tradition, time to "prepare" for
the big one. In reality, most of us don't prepare, but merely think about it
and procrastinate, or think that there's little we can do to protect ourselves
and families.

But, there are things we can do to protect ourselves--simple things that don't
take a lot of time, effort or money. Call it a big pay off for a little effort,
a common theme in these times of doing more with less.

What do we mean by "big pay off"? A general rule of preparedness is that there
is a pay back ratio of 100 to 1. For example, for every minute you spend
stocking food and water in your emergency supplies kit, you'll avoid 100
minutes of effort trying to find potable water after the earthquake. A similar
comparison can be made to dollars invested. Suppose you spend $10 and one hour
bracing your china closet at home and it doesn't topple and break during the
earthquake; you've saved the furniture and its contents. But supposed you
didn't make that investment; it could cost you a thousand dollars or more to
replace and repair it, and untold time lost.

So what are the high pay-off actions that you can take now? Following are some
(but not an all) of the things you can do at home and at the Lab:

Home:

Make sure your water heater is fastened down. This costs
little and could prevent your house from burning down.

Prepare a disaster supplies kit. See the checklist on page 3 or contact
LBL's Emergency Services Office at X6554 or X6016. To stock the basics could
take as little as an hour with little or no investment.

Prepare an emergency plan for your family. Discuss with all family members
the location of supplies, utility shutdown procedures, emergency phone numbers
and who to call should the family be separated when disaster strikes. This
costs only 30 minutes of your time.

Safeguard or prepare copies of important papers such as insurance policies,
titles and deeds and personal documents such as birth certificates and marriage
licenses. Store copies in a safe location other than your home.

Work

Spend about 10 minutes reading your building's emergency plan.
See your building manager. If you don't know who he or she is, call X6554 and
ask. The plan includes instructions for credible emergencies at LBL.

Spend about 5 minutes getting familiar with the emergency pages near the
back of the LBL phone book. You'll find information about what to do during and
after an earthquake. You'll also find information about the 22 emergency rescue
boxes located throughout the Lab.

Spend two minutes writing down the following number and putting it in your
purse or wallet: 800-445-5830. This is the Lab's emergency status
information announcement. If there is an emergency affecting the Lab, the
recording will provide employees emergency information such as whether to
report to work, road conditions or special instructions.

If you accomplish the above, you'll have a great start in preparing yourself
and your family for the next earthquake. There's more you can do to ensure a
greater degree of protection. Those seeking information should call the
Laboratory Emergency Services Office for free brochures and training. Don't
procrastinate; don't read this same article next year and say "I should get
ready." Start today.

Bldg. 50 auditorium; brown-bag lunch. One hour earthquake safety
presentation by LBL's Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Don Bell, who will
present the video "Light Search and Rescue," produced by LBL and the City of
Berkeley. He will also discuss LBL's earthquake program--what you should know
about the site, evacuation procedures, emergency supplies, communication, the
800 phone number.

Emergency Command Center Open House

Tuesday & Thursday, April 25 & 2711:30 a.m. -1:30 p.m.

Bldg. 48 (Fire House). Those interested in seeing the "nerve center" of
emergency operations are invited to tour the Command Center. You will have the
opportunity to visit the Fire Dispatch Center and see where 7911 calls are
answered.

The following is a list of things to do if you are on the Hill when a quake
strikes:

If you are inside a building, take refuge under a desk or table and hold
on until the shaking stops. If cover isn't available, stand in an inner doorway
or in an inside corner of a room. Stay clear of windows, shelves, file cabinets
and experimental setups. Don't immediately rush outside.

If you are outside, get into the open, away from buildings and overhead
power lines. Watch for falling debris and do not go inside.

If you are driving, stop in a safe open area away from buildings, trees
and overhead power lines. Avoid the downhill road shoulders because the road
could give way to a slide.

After the shaking stops, leave your building in accordance with your
evacuation plan. Do not use the elevator. Take personal belongings with you.
Help account for others. Meet in the assembly area and report injuries to your
building manager. Once outside, you may retrieve emergency supplies from the
rescue box nearest your building. In addition to rescue equipment, you'll find
two complete disaster first aid kits in each box.

Do not attempt to immediately leave the site. There are several good
reasons for this:

LBL roads may be inaccessible due to slide damage; driving your car would
only worsen the situation or possibly endanger you.

Unnecessary traffic will hinder the movement of emergency vehicles.

Your route home may be closed.

It is advisable to listen to your car
radio. If you don't have a car, open the nearest rescue box and turn on the
solar power radio. The LBL Emergency Command Center will activate and will be
the focal point of information. The ECC will communicate to your building
manager who will in turn pass on information about road closures both on and
off site.

If you're in one of our off-site buildings, including campus, you may
still receive information from your building manager. He/she will have radio
communications with the ECC.

Regardless of where you are, don't panic; remain calm and remember that
the lab has trained personnel, supplies and equipment specifically for
earthquake emergencies.

All lab emergency responders participate at least
annually in an earthquake drill. You can do your part by following these
instructions. -- By Don Bell

Bob Berninzone of Facilities tries unsuccessfully to pull a Pepsi can from a
3,000-pound (no joke!) bale of aluminum cans at the Sutta Company recycling
facility. A group of LBL employees toured the new Sutta facility on Tuesday,
April 4, as part of the Lab's Earth Month activities. Twenty-five tons of LBL
and UC Berkeley waste are processed at the facility each month. The next Sutta
tour is scheduled for Tuesday, April 25. For more information, contact Shelley
Worsham at X6123.

But because of cave-curious humans and pesticides, many bat species may be
heading the way of the condor and the spotted owl. More than half of the 22 bat
species in California are under consideration as threatened or endangered by
the U.S. Department of the Interior.

Scott is director of animal care at the California Bat Conservation Fund in
Marin County. The center nurses injured bats back to health and sends experts
to schools to lecture on the benefits of bats. She spoke as a part of the Lab's
Earth Month activities.

Scott's mission is to dispel the B-movie myths about bats that many people grow
up with: That they are simply blind "rats with wings" out to suck our blood.

"Blind as a bat" is a myth, she said. Most bats have eyesight as good as or
better than that of humans. Sonar complements their eyesight for quick
maneuvering at night, and keener species can distinguish a single human hair in
mid-flight.

On the evolutionary tree, she said, bats are closer to humans than to rodents.
Bats, apes and humans are the only creatures with opposable thumbs. Bats are
smart and have personalities, just like cuddlier higher mammals.

The danger of blood-sucking bats is practically nil north of the U.S.-Mexican
border, she said. The three vampire species--out of a thousand species
worldwide--live in Central and South America. Two prefer chickens; the third
feasts on larger farm animals, but might attack a person if there isn't a
sheep, goat or donkey around.

Wildlife experts traditionally haven't helped the animal's image. It used to be
standard procedure to kill any bat brought in to a refuge, for fear that it
might be rabid. But studies show that only one in a thousand bats carries
rabies, Scott said--a frequency on par with other wildlife. (Those that do get
the disease lose their ability to fly, which is why you should never touch a
grounded bat.)

Through education, she says, people are learning. Farmers are finding out that
fruit bats are their friends, not the crop-stealing nuisances they had thought.
In addition to pollinating, most fruit-eating species eat over-ripe fruit,
which it is no longer of use to farmers and can serve as a host to fruit flies.

Where is the best place to find bats in California? Go where the bugs are,
Scott says. On summer nights, bats leave their caves, trees and barns to fly
over lakes, ponds, and other standing water, where there is a healthy supply of
mosquitoes and other insects. Bats hibernate in winter.

For anyone interested in attracting bats to their home, the Bat Conservation
Fund offers blueprints for "bat houses," similar to the bird kind but with
vertical slats inside for roosting.

The Bat Conservation Fund can be reached at (415) 456-6598. n

More bat facts:

Bats form the order Chiroptera, which means "hand-wing."

Bats are the only mammals that fly.

Moths are the favorite food of many insectivorous bats. Species also eat
mosquitoes, beetles, crickets, and even scorpions.

Some fruit-bearing plants have evolved closely with bats and produce
hormones in certain seasons to help the bats during gestation.

Biggest bat: Indian flying fox, with a wing span of six feet.

Smallest bat: bumble bee bat, weighing less than a penny.

In some caves in Mexico, 500 bats crowd into each square foot to conserve
heat.

Some Southeast Asian countries consider bat meat a delicacy. In Guam,
appetite for fruit bat stew has driven some bats to near extinction.

CAPTION -- Don Weber of Facilities got an up-close view of a bat at last week's
lecture on bat conservation by Christine Scott of the Bat Conservation Fund in Marin
County.Photo by Steve Adams

More than 240 children of employees have registered for Take Our Daughters to
Work Day 1995 at LBL, taking place on Thursday, April 27. Individualized
schedules are being sent to parents for their children.

A message to parents whose children are participating: Please drop your
child/children off at the Bldg. 50 Auditorium by 8:30 a.m. and pick them up at
the cafeteria by 3:30 p.m. Although there is no space available for you to
accompany the children in the workshops, you will be able to meet them for
lunch.

The schedule is as follows:

Time Activity Location

8:30-9 a.m. Continental Breakfast Bldg. 50 Auditorium

9-9:30 a.m. Opening Ceremony Bldg. 50 Auditorium

10-11 a.m. Morning Workshops (See individual schedule)

11:30 a.m.- 1 p.m. Lunch Cafeteria

1:30-2:30 p.m. Afternoon Workshops (See individual schedule)

2:45-3:30 p.m. Ice Cream Social w/Guest Speakers Cafeteria

For more information, contact Marva Wilkins in the Center for Science and
Engineering Education, X5640.

Currents Online edition
The full text of each edition of Currents is published
electronically on the World Wide Web at the following URL:
http://www.lbl.gov/Publications/Currents/Currents.html. To set up your
computer to access the World Wide Web, call the Mac and PC Support Group
at X6858.

Visitors to the 22nd floor of Oakland's Kaiser Building, which houses the
University of California's executive offices, are treated to a colorful
overview of the three UC-managed labs (LBL, Livermore, and Los Alamos). The
display, entitled "Serving the Nation Through World-Class Science and
Technology," includes photos of each director, as well as scenery and program
shots from each lab. The lobby area contains displays on each of the UC
campuses. UC President Jack Peltason (above) said of the display: "This is an
impressive showcase for the work the labs do and the value they represent. It's
also symbolic of our new partnership with the labs and the Department of Energy
for lab management, and our efforts to strengthen and increase interactions
among the campuses and labs--all in the spirit of continued public service."Photo by Bryan Quintard

"Contemporary Views of Multimetallic Catalysts" will be presented by
Terry King of ISU Science &Technology at 4 p.m. in Pitzer Auditorium,
Latimer; refreshments at 3:30 p.m.

PHYSICS DEPARTMENT COLLOQUIUM

"The Discovery and Some Properties of High-Tc Superconductors" will be
presented by K. Alex Müller of the IBM Zurich Research Laboratory,
Switzerland, at 4:30 p.m. in 1 Le Conte; tea at 4 p.m. in 375 Le Conte.

2 t u e s d a y

OPEN CALENDAR

3 w e d n e s d a y

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING SEMINAR

"Fluid Dynamics of the Earth's Interior" will be presented by Gerald
Schubert of UCLA at 4 p.m., 3110 Etcheverry; refreshments will be served at
3:30 p.m.

"Total and Site-Selective Oxygen Isotope Shift in YBa2Cu3Ox" will be
presented by K. Alex Müller of the IBM Zurich Research Laboratory,
Switzerland, at noon in the Bldg. 66 Auditorium.

DEPARTMENT OF ASTRONOMY COLLOQUIUM

"The Complex Dynamics of Clusters of Galaxies" will be presented by Ann
Zabludoff of Carnegie Observatory at 3:30 p.m. in 2 Le Conte; tea at 3 p.m.,
661 Campbell.

MATERIALS SCIENCE SEMINAR

"Grain Boundary Microstructures in YBa2Cu3O7 Thin Films" will be
presented by Ann Marshall of Stanford University at 4 p.m., 105 Northgate.

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING SEMINAR

"H-Infinity Control of Automobile Active Suspensions" will be presented
by Hidenori Kimura of the University of Tokyo, Japan/Severance Russell Springer
Professor, UCB, at 4 p.m., 3110 Etcheverry; refreshments will be served at 3:30
p.m.

5 f r i d a y

UPTE - LBL LOCAL 184

General Membership Meeting for Technical Employees, Research Associates
and Administrative Professionals not in AFSCME, noon-1 p.m. in the Cafeteria
Conference Room.

BIOMECHANICAL/MECHANICAL ENGINEERING SEMINAR

"Pneumatic Artificial Muscles and Hopping Machines" will be discussed by
Roger Kram of UCB at 1 p.m., 3110 Etcheverry.